"'I mean, Setzer has the more girlish figure, but there's really no telling just how far those scars go. And Edgar does have all that long blond hair—'"

Omg, this made me LOL.

Great portrayal of Locke/Celes in this fic. "'I admit, Celes, that I was still in love with Rachel when I met you. That all of my actions for a good five years of my life were colored with the half-mad goal of bringing her back.'" - LOVE this part. You pretty much summarized why Locke is my favorite character and Locke/Celes are my favorite pairing- there is SO MUCH that can be said about them and their backstories, and Locke is also kind of crazy when you think about it- I mean really. Dead girlfriend in a basement? "Half-mad goal" is such a great description, because to me it shows that Locke KNOWS he's mad for doing this, but by saying "half-mad" it's like he's still in some sort of denial. I don't know if that's what you meant, but... that's how I took it. :]

Keep up the good work. I know you have a good potential, but it just didn't show on this particular story. I had a little feeling that the characters were being a little thread-pulled from above, which is to say, the dialogues felt a little superficial.

Don't get discouraged, though. It takes practise and, in the end, you yourself will look back to this tale and see how much you will have improved.

I really liked this. It's not often you find a CelesXLocke pairing where Celes is kept in her character. You paint her perfectly in this, she's not to weak or wussy like I usually see in other one-shots.

I love how you continued this after your last story, it is a lot of fun reading a continuation, I hope you write more about CelesXLocke, or just Celes.

I must say, this is really fantastic. I was just saying today how much I'd like a Locke/Celes fic where Celes isn't portrayed as some weak, crying damsel, and you really delivered. Your Celes is strong and confident and Locke a little lost and too aware of his hero complex, because no one ever really writes him conscious of it. Or the craziness of the Rachel-revival scenario.

You wrote Locke with issues and both parties actually aware of them, and for that you are my new hero.

The small talk was cute and appropriately awkward, and his reaction to her pointing out the eye makeup made me smile. And of course, the bandana and both literally and figuratively placing them on equal ground as sort of a balancing force was a wonderful way to end. Atleast, that's what I took from it, I don't know if that was your actual intention.

One thing, I believe you might be missing something here: "The mixture of reds was a familiar taste in his mouth, but the confession"

Aside from that minor issue, this was a sound effort and a very entertaining read. I hope to see more VI work from you in the future.